Cessna TU206G accident near Spanish Fork, Utah, September 16, 1987
On September 16, 1987 at about 5:20 pm local time, a Cessna TU206G, registered N756HD, was destroyed in an accident near Spanish Fork, Utah. It was a positioning flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 16, 1987 · about 5:20 pm local time
- Place
- Spanish Fork, Utah · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna TU206G · all TU206Gs on the register
- Registration
- N756HD · no longer on the register · serial U20604096
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Positioning flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHILE CRUISING AT 10,500 FT WITH THE POWER SET AT 28 INCHES MAP & 2350 RPM, THE ENG SUDDENLY LOST PWR & BEGAN KNOCKING. THE PLT NOTED A RAPID DROP IN OIL PRESSURE & SAW A 3-INCH HOLE IN THE TOP OF THE ENG COWLING. HE ATTEMPTED TO LAND ON A HIGHWAY, BUT WAS UNABLE DUE TO VEHICULAR TRAFFIC, SO HE CHANGED HIS APCH TO LAND BESIDE THE ROADWAY. JUST BFR LANDING, HE SAW POWERLINES & PULLED UP TO AVOID A COLLISION. THE ACFT THEN ENTERED A HIGH SINK RATE (STALLED). THE PILOT STATED THE ACFT 'IMPACTED THE GROUND IN A FLAT, RATHER NOSE LOW ATTITUDE.' THE ACFT BEGAN BURNING IMMEDIATELY AFTER IMPACT, BUT THE PLT EXITED THE PLANE WITHOUT INJURY. A TEARDOWN OF THE ENG REVEALED A CATASTROPHIC FAILURE OF THE #2 PISTON AND WRIST PIN, BUT THE INVESTIGATION DID NOT DETERMINE WHICH HAD FAILED 1ST. THE ENGINE HAD BEEN OVERHAULED ON 6/5/84, USINGSEVERAL COMPONENTS (INCLUDING PISTONS & PISTON PINS) MANUFACTURED BY SUPERIOR AIR PARTS, INC. ACCORDING TO MAINTENANCE LOGS, THE ACFT HAD FLOWN 1045 HRS SINCE MAJOR OVERHAUL OF THE ENG.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,800 hours in all; 353 in this make and model; 370 in the last 90 days; 1,690 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,276 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, August 3, 1987; 344 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520-M (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Scenic Aviation
The flight
- Departed from: BDG Blanding UT at 4:00 pm
- Destination: SLC Salt Lake City UT
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 340° at 15 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 36°F (2°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:52 pm from SLC, 57 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.